Then there was the close-to-home rivalry between the United States and Canada at the World Juniors tournament in 1999. Hall remembers the roaring, white-out crowd on New Year’s Eve in Winnipeg. The fans spilled into the upper deck of the arena (something that hadn’t happened since the Jets had left, Hall said he was told).
“You were literally playing an all-out war against Team Canada,” Hall said. “That was about as hostile of an atmosphere as you could hope for in an event. But it was an incredible experience.”
Plus, the cherry on top was the United States winning the game, 5-2.
One of Hall’s greatest honors in hockey came that next year when he was named the captain of the 2000 U.S. National Junior Team in Sweden.
He remembers that he couldn’t believe how privileged he was to be chosen as the captain when there were so many players “right up and down the line that I think were leaders.”
“I think that’s what makes really great teams, is just having a lot of captains, a lot of leaders in their own way,” Hall said.
Hall, who turns 40 in August, retired from playing professional hockey in 2017 and joined Morgan Stanley as a financial advisor where he still works today in the wealth management division in Tampa.
Hall was fascinated about the financial world as a youngster after hearing his father talk about the idea of investing and making your money work for you, Hall said. He graduated from Michigan State University with a finance degree, so even before his professional hockey career got started, he knew what he wanted for his career path post-hockey. He wanted to help people navigate the financial pieces throughout their lives, from planning for college to investing for retirement.
Though Hall works with people in various industries, his ability to help athletes is something very personal to him based on his unique background playing pro hockey. Hall has enjoyed the transition from one career to another, adding it’s “the best of both worlds.”
